Consequences
by zahri
Summary: A man relives some of his worst memories, with an unexpected ending.


  
Consequences   
  
Jerry ran his hand through Sandy's hair. "Sandy... dear... I wanted to ask you something." He grinned shyly, and looked down at the floor of his car. It wasn't exactly the best car on the market, but it ran. And that was enough.  
"Yes?" Sandy asked quietly, her sky blue eyes alight with a sort of twinkle that seemed to convey the idea that she knew exactly what Jerry was going to ask.  
"Well," Jerry coughed to clear his throat. "We've known each other a few years now, since the day we met in Physics class." He smiled slightly at the memory before continuing, "And I know that I won't be able to provide you with the fastest car, the biggest house, and the most vacations, but I love you, and I need you... and I wish to spend the rest of my life with you..."  
He blushed softly before asking quietly, his shy voice barely heard over the crickets chirping in the distance, "Sandy... will you marry me?"  
Sandy laughed, her voice sounding like angel's, Jerry decided. "Silly, how can I marry you when you didn't get down on your knee!" She grinned impishly, grabbed his hand, and pulled him out of the car.  
As she beamed down at him, Jerry carefully got down on one knee and asked, with a bit more confidence, "Sandy..." he chuckled. "Will you marry me?"  
"Yes," she cried, cupping his face in her small, gentle palms. She ran her fingers through his soft black hair, and cried tears of joy.  
And God smiled down on them.  
  
~  
  
On the night before the big event, Sandy and Jerry were siting around talking on the swing on the front porch. The swing creaked constantly, attesting to its old age. But the lovers did not even notice.  
Sandy placed her head on Jerry's shoulder for quite some time, simply happy to know he was there, and that he loved her. She raised her eyes for a moment, to look into Jerry's eyes, before softly saying, "Jerry, I have a question."  
"Yes, my love?" he asked as he kissed her cheek gently.  
"Do you love God? Will you go to church every week with me?" she softly asked, her eyes carefully watching his reaction.  
"Of course, love, what a silly question!" he replied, before reaching down to tickle her, her laughter echoing across the night wind.  
  
~  
And the years passed, with children's laughter echoing the halls, a sort of prelude to the inevitable. That night, after all the children had been tucking away by their doting mother, a sort of soft, gentle weeping, filled the house. It came from the bedroom.  
"Jerry, you promised," she whispered, a single tear traveling down her cheek.  
To which Jerry replied, "Fah. Who needs church? I need sleep," he accused.  
"Well, you wouldn't need sleep if you didn't work such long shifts!" Sandy accused.  
He sighed. "My dear, who brings in the money around here? Do you not want clothes on your back, food on the table, a nice car?"  
"Yes," she replied. "But material things will all fall away before God."  
He only grunted and turned over, turning a deaf ear to his wife's pleas.  
  
~  
The next morning came, sunlight streaming through the windows. Jerry alone is in the room, with the wife and kids attending church. He tosses and turns, his incoherent mumbling testament to his current nightmares.  
  
~  
  
He was reliving that memory again, the one where he promised his wife that he would go to church every week with her. He winced at the flippant tone his younger self used to assure his wife that he would.  
But things had gotten out of hand... his job...he needed to make enough money for his family, ever growing as it was...  
Who had time for someone who hadn't walked the earth in 2,000 years? Not I, he decided, with a sigh. Not I.  
As he stood there pondering life and religion, the devil walked up to him, grinning evilly.   
"Ah, what a strange dream this is," he whispered to himself. "For me to meet the devil."  
The devil did not speak, merely grinning like he knew something Jerry did not. This is creepy, Jerry decided.  
The scene shifted.  
  
~  
He found himself reliving the memory of one of his younger sons asking him to help him with his homework from bible school.  
"Not now, son," he replied, shifting through the newspapers. "I need to find the score of the baseballs games. I bet a lot of money that the Yankees would win."  
His son sighed and walked away to find his mother to help him. Maybe she would know what to do. Daddy sure didn't.  
The devil appeared before the two versions of Jerry, blowing a ring of fire at the newspaper. It disappeared, although the younger Jerry did not realize it was gone. He continued to make the motions of turning the pages, getting more frustrated each time he turned the page, because he could not find the scores.  
The devil grinned, freaking the older Jerry out. And the scene shifted, one last time.  
  
~  
  
He found himself at work, filling out reports busily. One of his coworkers walked up to him, and watched him without speaking.  
"What do you want, Harry?" Jerry asked, annoyed at the intrusion. "It better be good. I have work to do. Can't you see?"  
"Umm," Harry replied, shifting on one foot. "Deborah and I wondered if you wanted to go to our church picnic on the 27th," he asked, quietly.  
"Church picnic?" he asked, further annoyed. "You bothered me for some mindless trivial thing as religion? God doesn't exist. He didn't help me get this job, he didn't help me support my kids, and he CERTAINLY wasn't there when I needed him! What has he done for me?! Get out, Harry. Tell your wife I said 'Thanks but NO THANKS'!" Jerry sputtered.  
Harry tripped over himself in a haste to leave Jerry's cubicle.  
  
  
Boy, had he been hard on his family and friends, the older Jerry decided. "Maybe when Sandy gets back, I'll tell her how I've changed, how I will seek God out." Yes, he decided. He would do that.  
Now, to wake up, from the infernal place...  
A low chuckling came from behind the older Jerry, causing him to whirl around. The devil stood there, laughing at him. "You stupid FOOL," he sneered. "It is too late for you. You are trapped in Hell forever, now. You died, of a massive heart attack, while your family was away at... church," he said, spitting out the last word.  
"You are mine now, slave." The devil grinned wickedly, as the scene shifted to a place no mortal should ever have to see...  
Hell.  
Screams of torture echoed all around, fire and brimstone rising up to engulf its victims, over and over.  
There is no escape.  
It was too late for Jerry.  
Too late, indeed.  
  
  
  
  
  



End file.
